Adjustment fitting for reinforced hose in which a seal is maintained during adjustment



Sepf- 25, 1962 H. E. BACI-IER ETAL 3,055,682

ADJUSTMENT FITTING FOR EEINFoRcED HOSE IN WHICH A SEAL Is NAINTAINEDDURING ADJUSTMENT Original Filed Oct. 1l, 1955 United States PatentOffice Patented Sept. 25, 1962 spaanse ADJUSTMENT rrr'rnte nonnnntroncnn nosa The present application is a division of applicationSerial No. 539,831, filed October 11, 1955, and relates to improvementsin end fittings for hose having a lip seal which is so designed that thenip-ple may be readily rotated after assembly thus providing an endfitting which is especially adapted for an elbow connection.

As disclosed, the invention comprises a nipple inserted into the hosehaving an elbow extension, a swiveled adaptor on the nipple, a sleeve tobe inserted between the inner tube of the hose and the hosereinforcement, a socket having axial movement relative to the adaptorfor gripping the reinforcement between the sleeve and the socket, and ametal-to-metal seal between the sleeve and the nipple. To adjust theangularity of the elbow a slight rotation of the socket to relieve thepressure of the metal-to-metal seal Will enable the nipple and elbow tobe readily rotated relative to the sleeve and socket. The ease withwhich the nipple may be rotated results from the fact that thecompressive forces of initial assembly are of small magnitude.

Thus an object of the invention is to provide an improved end fittingfor flexible hose characterized by the ease with which the nipple may berelieved of assembly forces and rotated relative to the associatedcomponents of the assembly.

Another object is to provide an improved end fitting having a sealinglip, a metal-to-metal seal and a nipple having an elbow connection.

These and other objects and advantages will appear from the followingdescription and claims.

In the drawings,

FIG. l is a side elevational view partly shown in broken section, and

FIG. 2 is an enlarged vertical cross section view of a portion of thefitting shown in FIG. 1.

Referring to the illustrated form of the invention, the hose lineassembly comprises a flexible :hose 12 having an inner tube 14 and areinforcing structure for the tube in the form of braided wire 16. Theend fitting 18 is of a detachable, reuseable type and comprises a socket20 for threaded engagement at 22 with a swivel adaptor 243. The nipple24 is rotatable in the adaptor 23. A sealing sleeve 26 is shownembracing the terminal end of the inner tube 14 herein called the lipseal portion 28. A wire 30 attaches the nipple y24 to the adaptor 23.

Whi-le it is to be understood that the invention has general applicationto flexible hose construction materials heretofore in wide use, it isespecially adapted to the effective sealing of hose construction havingan inner tube of relatively stiff and low elastic material, as forexample, such materials as polymerized tetrafiuoroethylene.

The hose 12 in the assembly illustrated is first cut to length and isthen inserted into the socket 20, the latter being slid inwardly fromthe cut end of the hose. Next the nipple 24 is inserted into the portionof the inner tube 14 to loosen the wire braid 16 adjacent the end of thehose 12 to facilitate the insertion of the sleeve 26. After looseningthe wire braid 16 the nipple 24 is Withdrawn from the bore of the innertube 14 and the sleeve 26 is manually inserted between the Wire braid 16and the inner tube 14 to assume the position shown in FIG. 2. Thereafterthe nipple 24 with the sleeve 26 embracing the end' 28 is reinsertedinto the bore of the tube 14 and the socket 20 is slid along the hose 12until threaded engagement can take place at 22 between the socket 20 andadaptor 23 upon relative rotation.

After the adaptor 23 is screwed into the socket 20, the forces developed-by this assembly bring the rounded external annular shoulder 34 of thesleeve 26 into fluid sealing contact with the conical surface 36 of thenipple 24. At the same time, the wire braid 16 is wedged at 38 betweenthe sleeve 26 and the socket 20 and firmly clamped. Com-pression of thehose 12 at 40 between the nipple 24 and the socket 20 will also takeplace upon assembly as just described for reasons hereinafter appearing.

With the inner tube 14 of a material relatively stiff and non-elastic ascompared to the usual elastomeric inner tube stock of flexible hoselines, insufficient pressure is developed to provide an initial sealbetween the inner tube end 28 and the sleeve 26 unless some provision ismade to obtain the necessary contiguous association between the fluidpressure actuated lip seal portion 28 and the inner surface of theembracing sleeve 26. At the same time it is desirous that thiscontiguous relationship between the sealing surfaces be obtained Withoutsacrificing the advantages connected with a detachable, reuseable typeof fitting which may be manually assembled without the Iuse of specialassembly tools. To this end in connection with the example beingdescribed, the outside diameter of the inner tube 14 is approximately.281", the inside diameter of the bore is approximately .187 and theoutside of the nipple 24 is approximately .207. Thus the tube 414 willhave its normal inside diameter of approximately .187l expanded anamount approximately .020" at the time the nipple 24 is manuallyinserted into the inner tube =14. The sleeve .26, where it embraces theterminal end 28 of the inner tube 14 has a main inside diameter ofapproximately .280 with the inside diameter of the annular sharpcornered ribs 42 approximating .268 which is in the onder of .012 lessthan the expanded outer diameter of the inner tube 20. With existingmanufacturing tolerances, in practice the amount of squeeze orcompression exerted by the ribs 42 upon the tube 20 Iwill be in theorder of .008 to .013. This amount of squeeze permits the sleeve !26 tobe manually applied to the end of the inner t-ube 14 and thereafter themanual insertion of the nipple l24 into the bore of the hose 12 may takeplace with the sleeve 26 embracing the inner tube 14 as shown in FIG. 2land with the ribs 42 deforming the inner tube 14 as indicated. Therelationship of the ribs 42 with reference to the material of the lipseal portion 28 is such as to prevent any appreciable flow of fluidbetween the ribs 42 and the deformed body of the inner tube and to anextent which enables the fluid pressure Within the inner tube 14 andbetween the inner tube 14 and the outer surface of the nipple 24 tobuild up the necessary pressure along the inner surface of the tube 14to force the annular sealing lip portion 28 embraced by the sleeve 26into sealing relation with the inside Wall of the sleeve 26. Underconditions of vacuum the lip seal portion 28 will seal along the outersurface of the nipple 24. In practice the inside diameter of the socket20 at 44 will approximate the outside diameter of the wire braid 16 toproduce at 44 a compression area to provide low pressure and vacuumsealing at this point.

To prevent deformation of the sleeve 126 during the final assembly ofthe socket 20 on the adaptor 23, the sleeve 26 has been provided with along taper and the male taper of the sleeve 26 at 46 can be made greaterthan the female taper of the socket 20 at 48. This difference in taperalso acts to force the shoulder 34 of the sleeve 26 into metal-to-metalsealing relation with the conical surface 36 of the nipple 24. Where theforces of assembly directed against the nipple 26 are sufficiently greatto cause `deformation of the conical surface 36 when the shoulder 34 ofthe sleeve 26 is rounded, it may become desirable to have the surface 34more complementary to the surface 36 so as lto distribute the loading ofthe metal-to-metal seal between the nipple 24 and the sleeve 26 over agreater area.

To appreciate the present invention it 'must be understood that thecontiguous relationship between the lip seal portion 28 of the innertube 14 and the inner surface of the sleeve 26 is that required only toprovide an initial seal enabling the fluid pressure in the inner tube 14and between the outer surface of the nipple 26 and the inner surface ofthe portion 428 to urge the portion 2S radially outward to actuate theouter Wall of the portion 28 into uid sealing relation with the innerwall of the sleeve 26 and to provide relatively high unit compression`at the areas of the ribs 42 without sacrificing manual assembly. Tworibs 42 are shown because we feel that it is a preferred arrangement.However, a single rib 42 is capable of giving satisfactory performancedepending upon the characteristics of the inner tube material.

It should also be understood in order to distinguish the presentinvention over that of Patent No. 2,463,293 that the amount ofcompression to which the lip seal portion 28 is subjected as a result ofthe initial assembly of the inner tube 14 with the sleeve 2-6 and nipple24 is of a minor magnitude as compared to the compression developed inthe final assembly of socket 20 upon the adaptor 23 and to which thewire braid 16 is subjected. The sleeve 26 is constructed to protect thelip seal portion 28 from the high compression forces of nal assembly indistinction to the disclosure of said patent. It is because of this factthat the nipple 26, upon loosening of the threaded connection betweenthe adaptor 23 and socket 20, may be readily rotated within the bore ofthe inner tube 14. After the initial assembly, the forces of assemblyrequired to bring at least an annular portion of the lip seal portion 28into contiguous relationship with at least an annular portion of thesleeve 26, need not be sustaining compressive forces. It is for thisreason that the present invention makes it possible for the first timeto provide an end fitting having optimum performance capacity with hosehaving an inner tube of deformable material of the class of elastomersand plastomers which are incapable of sustaining forces of compressionof fluid sealing magnitude under pressures for which the assembly isdesigned under conditions of use and aging experienced in actualservice.

To adjust the angularity of the elbow extension 24' brazed to the nipple24 it is only necessary to effect slight relative rotation between thesocket 20 and the adaptor 23 to relieve the pressure of themetal-to-metal seal between the shoulder 34 and the conical surface 36.Thereafter the nipple 24 and elbow 24 may be readily 4 rotated by handto locate the position of the elbow 24' as desired. This ability to somanipulate the nipple 24 and elbow 24 results from the fact that thecompressive forces upon the nipple 24 resulting from initial assemblyare of small magnitude and that sealing of the inner tube 14 within thefitting is dependent upon actuation of the lip seal 28 portion by fluidpressure.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and patentableis:

l. In combination, a hose having an inner fluid sealing tube and anouter tubular reinforcement, an elbow and end fitting assembly of thelip seal type for said hose characterized by being detachable andreuseable and its ease of angular adjustment comprising a nippleprovided with a shoulder portion having an elbow extension non-rotatablyconnected thereto, said nipple having a reduced substantiallycylindrical portion of generally uniform diameter extending from saidshoulder portion in a direction opposite to said elbow, frusto conicalmeans joining said shoulder portion and said cylindrical portion of saidnipple extending radially and diagonally outwards from said reducedsubstantially cylindrical portion thereby forming an abutting surface, asleeve having a radially inwardly extending portion directly abuttingsaid frusto conical means to provide a non-deformable wall defining withsaid nipple end annular recess to receive the lip seal portion of thefiuid sealing tube of the hose, a socket embracing said sleeve andnipple and defining with said sleeve an annular recess to receive thereinforcement of the hose, an adapter in which said nipple is supportedfor swivel movement relative to said sleeve and socket, a threadedconnection between said adapter .and said socket to effect relativeaxial movement between said sleeve and nipple to grip the hosereinforcement between said socket and said sleeve and to exert an axialthrust on said sleeve, an axial thrust connection between said adapterand said nipple to resist relative axial movement between said nippleand adapter while permitting relative swivel movement, said directlyabutting portions on said nipple and sleeve providing a metal-to-metalseal regulated by the thrust upon said sleeve by said socket wherebysaid nipple and the angularity of said nipple and elbow extension may bereadily adjusted without distorting said lip seal upon relieving thethrust upon said sleeve.

2. In the combination of claim l, said sleeve and said socket havingopposed conical surface between which the reinforcement is gripped.

3. In the combination of claim l wherein said inner sealing tube isrelatively free from compressive forces within the annular recessbetween said nipple and sleeve.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS656,187 Gunnell Aug. 2l, 1900 2,120,275 Cowles June 14, 1938 2,310,250Melsom Feb. 9, 1943 2,685,458 Shaw Aug. 3, 1954 2,749,151 Lyons June 5,1956 2,833,567 Bacher et al May 6, 1958

